Dream by Night
by Stratagem
Summary: When Allura and Shiro's daughter develops severe exhaustion, Allura and Coran explain that all Altean teenagers go through this phase. But when it worsens and she starts having spells that they can't wake her up from, panic ensues.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own VLD!

A/N: Okay, poor Emi, this is the first fic where she's a teenager and I'm messing with her because she's Human-Altean! But yeah, Emi's 14 years old here and dealing with Altean puberty and it not quite mixing well with human puberty. Sorry Allura and Shiro… Oh, and by this time, she's sort of grown out of calling Keith "Uncle Keith," but she still does it on occasion.

* * *

 **Dream By Night**

Part 1

Weave, spin, high kick.

Emi ducked out of the way as Keith came at her, his sword swinging through the empty space where she had been. The blade was far closer than it should have gotten, almost catching her on the arm, but that was her fault. She was feeling sluggish, unable to fully wake up out of her grogginess.

Normally she was a morning person, bouncing right out of bed to crash through the castle halls, beating on the walls and waking up everyone else. She was an absolute morning nightmare according to Pidge and Lance. But today was different. When she had woken up, it had been like swimming out of a pool of concrete.

She felt heavy.

Emi had trudged to the training floor for her daily pre-breakfast sparring session with her dad and Keith, but she just wasn't into it. Which probably would have gotten her killed if Keith wasn't so careful.

"What was that?" Keith said, dissipating his bayard and frowning at her, "I could've taken your arm off."

"Sorry," she said, feeling a yawn coming on.

Oh man, not the time, that would just make Keith mad. He would think she wasn't paying attention. She gritted her teeth and tried to concentrate on not yawning. Or rubbing her eyes. Or curling up on the floor like one of her cats. Or jumping back into her bed that was so far and calling her name, beckoning her back to the super soft blankets and her nest of pillows…

"Emi, you have to be more careful. You seem distracted," her dad said from his spot at the side of the sparring circle, "Everything okay?"

"Yep!" she said with forced cheerfulness that was edged with irritation. Wasn't she allowed to be tired? It was early morning, she got up super early every morning. If she happened to be tired this particular morning, it wasn't a big deal.

"Okay, then show us," he said, watching her closely.

Emi lifted her naginata, feeling its weight more than she usually did. While she unfortunately hadn't inherited her mother's super-strength, daily training kept her in shape. However, it felt like the naginata had somehow put on a few extra pounds overnight. She hefted it up higher and then swung it at Keith, knowing he would activate his bayard or block it with his shield. She had never won a sparring match against him, and this definitely wasn't going to be the day she miraculously broke that losing streak.

Her blade clanged against Keith's sword, and she stepped back, adjusting her grip on the staff portion of her weapon. He came after her, sword lifted above his head, and she had to shift to block one blow and then the second.

Normally she was the faster one, her style leaning more toward speed than power, but it felt like she was fighting underwater. Which she was actually pretty decent at, thanks to training sessions with Lance, but this was land. She was better on land.

Or she should have been.

Taking another step back, giving ground that she normally would've fought for, she crouched down and punched her naginata forward. Keith had to jump back to avoid the blade, which gave her some time to straighten up and find an advantage. She paused and thought about her next move, trying to work on her habit of going on instinct. But her brain was too fuzzy right now, and giving it time to think meant she thought about how exhausted she felt—

"Emi!"

Her head jerked and she dropped her weapon as she was yanked backward, her dad's hand on her arm. Keith's sword came within centimeters of her practice helmet, and if her dad hadn't moved her out of the way, it would've slammed into her helmet with enough force to rattle her brain.

Keith let out a stream of curses as his bayard immediately went back into neutral mode. "Why didn't you block?"

"I—" Why hadn't she blocked? That was an easy attack, one that she should've defended against just because it was second nature.

Startled, she froze as her dad pulled her helmet off, staring down at her. "What did I just say about being careful?" he demanded, and she noticed the fear in his grey eyes. She had scared him. "Where's your head this morning?" He tilted her chin up so she was looking at him instead of staring past him, trying to focus. "Emi?" His eyes narrowed before he gently touched her cheek, right under her eye. "You look really tired, sweetheart, are you feeling all right?"

Emi shook her head and pulled her head away, looking around for her naginata. She hadn't been shocked into dropping it in years. This morning was officially terrible. "Just sleepy. I don't…m'okay." There it was. Found it. She leaned over to pick up her weapon and the world tilted.

Emi swayed, a wave of exhaustion crashing over her. She sat down on the floor before she could fall, hands braced against the slightly cushy mat of the sparring circle.

Immediately her dad and Keith were beside her, Keith hovering while her dad put his hands on her shoulders. They were talking to her, but it was like their voices were muffled. Or maybe she was just processing everything slower?

She blinked and looked at her dad as he pressed his fingers against her wrist, talking at her even though she wasn't catching anything he said. Her eyelids felt like they had been carved from marble, and it was increasingly impossible to keep them open.

Keith moved away, maybe to go get someone? She thought she had heard her dad say her mom's name but she wasn't sure.

The sparring circle floor gave a little as she leaned on one arm, her head falling forward. It was too tempting, that small amount of softness, and she started to slide to the floor, wanting to sleep. Her dad scooped her into his arms and stood up, heading for the door at a run. She could hear his heart pounding as she leaned her head against his chest.

Emi fell asleep to the rapid sound, unable to keep her eyes open any longer. Just a power nap, then she'd be fine…


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: I don't own VLD!

* * *

 **Part 2**

Shiro barreled toward the infirmary, clutching Emi as fear ripped at him. He should have realized something was wrong the moment he walked into the gym and noticed she was moving slower than usual, not reacting quickly enough. She had been lethargic, every swing of her weapon delayed. Normally Emi was speedy and full of energy and gave Keith an actual workout, but today…

Instead of questioning her, Shiro had just assumed she had been sneaky and stayed up later than she was supposed to. She was fourteen now, which she often pointed out, and tended to think that her bedtime was a suggestion rather than a rule. But those dark purple circles under her eyes had startled him when he had removed her helmet. It looked like she hadn't slept in days, but she had been as animated and vibrant as ever just the day before.

And then Emi had collapsed, which freaked Shiro out. One second she was bend down to pick up her naginata, and the next she was sitting on the floor, her skin pale and blue eyes unfocused. She hadn't answered any of his questions, and her heartbeat had been slow when he checked her pulse.

Keith had run off to get Allura, yelling for her over the comm system and alarming the others.

"Emi, stay awake. Just tell me what's wrong," Shiro pleaded as her head bobbed. When she started to crumple to the floor, he had snatched her up, frightened by her silence and thready pulse.

He could hear the other paladins and Coran yelling over his wrist unit's comm system, echoed by Emi's own communication bracelet. Allura's voice was absent, probably because she was heading for the infirmary already. Unable to answer their questions, Shiro tuned them out and kept running, holding his daughter against his chest.

He skidded into the infirmary and headed straight to their main full body diagnostic scanner. Now that the Castle housed a variety of people, not just a handful of humans and Alteans plus one half-Galra and one half-Altean, the infirmary was outfitted to match. There were biobeds, scanners, machines, pods, anything they thought would be useful for the fluctuating crew.

Carefully, Shiro laid Emi down on the scanner's bed, rubbing her arm. "Emi, wake up, sweetheart," he said sternly, hoping a strict tone would get through to her.

Her eyes flickered half-open for a moment and she brushed at his hand as if he was annoying her. She mumbled something and closed her eyes again.

"Hey, no, no, you don't," he said, shaking her shoulder, "I need you to stay awake." Honestly, if she realized where she was, she would be scared enough to fully wake up. Ever since she had been kidnapped by scientists for a few days when she was eight, Emi had despised medical facilities and was genuinely frightened by them. When she had been younger, that fear had been crippling, but it had eased up as she had gotten older.

When he didn't get a response, Shiro put his fingers to her neck, taking her pulse again. It was stronger than it had been before, which was a good sign, but it wasn't where it should have been. He brushed his hand over her hair anxiously and stepped back to turn on the scanner. It quietly hummed to life and stared taking Emi's vitals while Shiro sent the castle medic a message.

The infirmary door slid open and Allura rushed in, followed by Keith and Coran. Shiro was sure the others would show up soon enough.

Allura sucked in a quick breath as she hurried over to Shiro, her eyes locked on their daughter. "Keith said Emi passed out." She grabbed Shiro's hand to keep herself from reaching out and touching Emi while the scanner was working. "What happened?"

"I don't know," Shiro said helplessly, "I wish I did. She seemed tired, but then it was like she fell asleep on her feet."

"So she was sleepy," Coran said, rubbing at his moustache.

"Yes, but not in a normal way," Keith said, frowning, "It was like she couldn't help falling asleep. Like she was exhausted."

Allura leaned over to look at the scanner's readings and, to Shiro's surprise, she smiled. "Oh! Coran, look at these quintessence levels, this explains everything."

Coran peered over her shoulder and nodded. "Just as I thought." He smiled back at Allura. "It's a _kuilon_ cycle."

"Explanations would be greatly appreciated," Shiro said, looping a hand around Allura's arm and giving her a gentle squeeze. "What does _kuilon_ mean?" Seeing that she wasn't freaking out made him feel a little better, but he still wanted to know why they shouldn't be panicking.

"We've talked about this before," Allura said, running her hand over his arm, "It's something that Altean teenagers go through."

"I don't remember that," Shiro said, trying to stay calm.

"It was a while ago since I last mentioned it. Last year, I think."

"Essentially her ability to shapeshift is getting a spectacular upgrade," Coran said proudly, "And since she was already quite gifted, she'll doubtlessly be one of the best shifters in our history."

"That's…" Shiro shook his head. "Wait, why did that make her pass out? And her pulse slowed down."

"Because the process can be very taxing for a young Altean," Allura said, "And sparring most likely made it worse." Reaching over, she tucked a strand of Emi's hair behind her ear. "The cycle can be very tiring."

"Is this a one time deal?" Keith asked, "Or does this happen a lot?"

"It depends on her potential for shifting," Coran said, "Some Altean teens only go through it a few times while others experience it frequently throughout their youth."

"I was one of the more frequent ones," Allura said, "And I would guess that Emi will be the same. But it shouldn't hurt her as long as she gets rest. Sleeping is an Altean's way of handling the process."

Shiro moved closer to the scanner, leaning down to rest his elbows on it as relief tried to steal over him. He put his hand on Emi's arm. "How do we help her?"

Allura hugged him from behind, her arms sliding around his waist. "For now, we let her sleep." She kissed his shoulder blade through his shirt. "And after that, we'll talk to her and everyone else about recognizing the symptoms. Mostly, we have to make sure she gets enough rest when she's in a cycle."

Okay… He wouldn't change anything about his baby girl, but sometimes having a child who was part alien was nerve-wracking. There were just so many unknown factors.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own VLD!

A/N: Ahhh, Human-Altean kiddo has it tough sometimes.

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

Emi blinked awake and automatically recognized that she wasn't looking up at the right ceiling. Where was she? She had seen enough of the training room ceiling after getting tossed by someone, usually Keith, and landing on her back. This wasn't the training room. But she could still feel that she was in the castle, its familiar energy resting against her skin. How long had she been out?

"Good morning, sleepyhead."

Emi rubbed at her eyes as her mother leaned over her, a small smile on her face.

"It's still morning?" Emi asked. Good, so it had just been a couple hours, then. Why had she passed out?

"Well, truthfully, it's morning again," Allura said, her hand resting on Emi's arm, "You've been asleep for almost a day, sweetheart."

That made the fourteen-year-old sit straight up, her fingers digging into the bed's squishy material. "No way! Hold on, Mom, you mean it's tomorrow?" She looked around and swiftly realized that she was in the infirmary, her least favorite place in the entire enormous castle-ship. Immediately, her chest tightened. She wanted out of there, she hated it in there. That old panic threatened to take over, and she had to force it back, reminding herself that she was safe, she was at home, her mom was right there.

"It's all right, you're fine," Allura said. Their gazes met, and Emi saw her eyes widen just a little, enough to know that she had been startled.

"What? What is it?" Emi reached up to touch her face, wondering if she had somehow broken her nose or something. Though she expected her mom would look way more concerned if that was the case. No, she just looked…confused? Whatever it was, it didn't make Emi feel any less anxious.

"Are you using your abilities right now?" Her mom asked. She took Emi's chin in her fingers and leaned in, peering at her eyes.

"No, why? Mom?"

In a nearby chair, her dad stirred, their voices having finally gotten loud enough to wake him. She hadn't even noticed him until he started moving, unfolding from the chair. He was up and by the scanner bed in a moment, standing beside her mom. "Hey, Nezumi-chan," he said, his voice warm, "Allura? What are you doing?"

"Freaking me out, she's freaking me out," Emi said, trying to get a handle on her anxiety again.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to," her mom said, letting go of her chin and pulling her into a hug. Emi held onto her, hugging her back tight to help herself calm down. She still wanted to know what was happening and why she was in the infirmary, but she was managing to fight back against her fear.

"Why were you looking at me like that?" Emi asked when she pulled back, wrapping her arms around her waist. "And what happened to me in the training room? And why am I here?" She glanced up at her parents and saw her dad make almost the exact same expression that her mom had earlier, eyes widened and everything. "What?!"

"Your right eye," Shiro said, taking hold of one of her hands. "It's a different color. Are you sure you're not shapeshifting?"

"I'm not, I know when I'm using my powers," Emi said, her voice raising, "How is it a different color? What color is it?"

"Green, very bright green," Allura said.

"Why?" Emi demanded, "I'm not doing that, why is it green?"

"I…I don't know." She sat down on the bed next to Emi and pulled her against her side, holding her close. Shiro sat down on the other side of Emi and wrapped both her and Allura in a hug, squishing Emi between them. After a few moments, Allura kissed Emi's forehead and sat back, keeping one arm around her. "You passed out in the training room because this was your first _kuilon_ cycle. Do you remember us talking about those cycles?"

That was…some kind of Altean puberty thing. She had been bombarded with lots of information about how growing up as a human and as an Altean might go down, and it was hard to keep it all straight. Honestly, she had thought that she would start the whole _kuilon_ thing when she had her first period last year, so when that hadn't happened, she guessed that she might miss out on that part of Altean puberty. Maybe it was just wishful hoping that something that caused her to go unconscious would happen the same time something that caused her misery happened.

"I sort of forgot, what is it again?" Emi glanced at her dad and then looked back at her mom. Whatever was going on, she was sort of glad that the rest of her family wasn't there at the moment. She didn't feel like discussing stages of puberty with everyone who had already gone through it, and her parents had probably kept them away for that very reason. They were pretty great like that.

"The part of you that allows you to shapeshift is going through a change," Allura said, smiling, "Basically, it's increasing your ability to shapeshift, which will give you more options. But it affects your entire body, which causes you to become exhausted."

"So…I passed out in the training room?"

"Which I'd like to avoid in the future," Shiro said. Emi subtly shifted and leaned against him, knowing that her dropping like that had probably frightened him. She vaguely remembered the look on his face, and she nuzzled her cheek against his shoulder. He reached over and patted her leg.

"I thought I was just really tired," Emi said

"That's how it feels before it hits," Allura said, "You'll feel tired and heavy, and when that happens, you need to find somewhere to lay down. Otherwise, you'll most likely faint."

Emi made a face. Okay, between a _kuilon_ cycle and a menstrual cycle, life currently sort of sucked. "How often will this happen?"

"A few times over the next few months," Allura said, "It doesn't last long."

Okay, that was a relief. "Wait, did the _kuilon_ thing make my eye change color? Is it permanent?"

"I'm not sure," Allura said, "I haven't heard of a _kuilon_ cycle causing something like this…"

But since Emi wasn't only Altean, it could have been something caused by her human side mixing poorly with the Kuilon cycle.

"Even if it is permanent, it's beautiful," Shiro said, "It's like jade."

Emi hid her face against his shoulder, squeezing her eyes shut tight. Okay, so maybe it was pretty this time, but what if she changed again next time she had a cycle? What if her entire face changed? Even her mother's hand on her back didn't make her feel better.


End file.
